Stop mechanism for shifting shuttle box looms



Sept. 26, 1950 c, DARWIN 2,523,648

STOP MECHANISM FOR SHIFTING SHUTTLE BOX LOOMS Filed April 8, 1949 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 FIGZ INVENTOR CLlFF'ORD DARWIN ATTORNEY.

ATTORNEY 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR CLIFFORD DARWIN C. DARWIN c 1 ma STOP MECHANISM FOR SHIFTING SHUTTLE BOX LOOMS Sept. 26, 1950 Flled Aprll 8, 1949 patented Sept. 26, 1950 UNI TED STATES PATENT OFFICE STOP MECHANISM FOR SHIFTING SHUTTLE BOX LOOMS Clifford Darwin, Paxton, Mass, assignor to Crompton & Knowles Loom Works, Worcester, Mass, a corporation of Massachusetts Application April 8, 1949, Serial No. 86,275

Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in stopping means for shifting shuttle box looms and it is the general object of the invention to effect loom stoppage should a shifting of the shuttle boxes be prevented for any reason, as by an improperly boxed shuttle.

Shuttle boxes are ordinarily shiftedbetween bottom and top center positions of lay by mechanism including a yieldable coupling between the lifter rod-and an actuator, such as a lever or rod operated thereby. If a shifting operation is called and a shuttle is not entirely boxed but overhangs part of the lay the boxes will be held against motion but the actuator operating mechanism of the boxes will move. Under such conditions the coupling yields to avoid breakage, but the shuttle remains in improper position and the picker stick will be broken unless the loom is 2 shuttle travels when propelled by one or the other of the picker sticks E3 or M, located respectively, at the right and left of Fig. 1. As shown herein the loom operates with four shuttles, SI, S2, S3 and S6, which are received by a gangG of shifting shuttle boxes. These shuttle boxes are under the control of a pattern mechastopped before the picking point is reached in S the loom cycle.

It is an important object of the present invention to provide electrically controlled loom stopping mechanism including a normally open switch which will be closed upon yielding of the coupling when the shuttle boxes are unable to move.

It is another object of the invention to provide means which will initiate loom stoppage early enough in the box shifting period to bring the loom to rest before the picking point is reached in the loom cycle.

With these and other objects in view which will appear as the description proceeds, the invention resides in the combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter described and set forth.

In the accompanying drawings, whereina convenient embodiment of the invention is set forth,

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of a loom having the invention applied thereto,

Fig. 2 is an enlarged side elevation looking in the direction of arrow 2, Fig. 1,

Fig. 3 is a horizontal section on line 3-3, Fig. 2,

Fig. 4 is a vertical section on line 4-4, Fig. 2. parts being broken away,

Fig. 5 is an enlarged side elevation looking in the direction of arrow 5, Fig. 1, showing the shipper and brake levers in running position, and

Fig. 6 shows diagrammatically an electric circuit which can be used with the 100m.

Referring particularly to Fig. 1, the loom frame [0 supports a lay l l which reciprocates backwardly and forwardly in the usual manner. The lay has a shuttle race 12 along which the active ni'sm not shown, but well understood, and are movable so that any one of the four shuttles canbe inactive picking position in alignment with the shuttle race 12. V

The gang G is supported on a box lifter rod I! to the lower end of which is secured a stud I6 held in vertically adjusted position on rod I5 by upper and lower adjusting nuts ll and I8, respectively. Pivote'd on stud I6 is a coupling designated generally at20 which is ordinarily in force transmitting position with respect to an actuator or operating rod 2! connected at its upper end to a box lifter lever 22. The coupling means includes a detent 25 pivoted thereon as at 26 and havin a pointed head 21 which enters a notch 28 in the actuator rod 2|. The head is normally held in the notch in the position shown in Fig. 2 by a relatively strong compression spring 29 interposed between the head and an adjusting screw 30 threaded through a yoke 3| on the coupling.

7 When the detent head is out of notch 28 the actuator rod 2| is capable of sliding on the coupling between side plates 32 and 33, the latter being secured to plate 32 by upper and lower bolts 34 and 35, respectively.

In normal operations the box shifting lever 22 will move to one or another of four positions when a'change in the active shuttle is required and a corresponding motion of the actuator rod 2i: will occur. If the boxes are free to shift the detent head will be held in notch 28 by spring 29 and. box lifter rod i5 will move with the actuator rod 2!. If, on the other hand, one or the other of the shuttles should project inwardly from its box it will resist motion of the gang G and the detent 25 will yield with respect to the actuator rod 2i as thelatter moves. In this yielding the detent 25 will rock to. the left as viewed in Fig. 2 out of the notch 28 and rod 2E will slide on the coupling. This structure is common and the particular mechanism shown in Fig. 2 is given as an example of box shifting mechanism including an actuator, a box lifter, and a yieldable coupling between them.

The loom driving mechanism is ordinarily located at the side of the loom opposite the shifting shuttle boxes and includes brake and shipper levers and 4|, respectively. The brake lever has a screw 43 positioned to engage a lug 44 from the shipper lever so that when the brake lever moves to the right, or clockwise as viewed in Fig. 5, the screw will engage the lug on the shipper handle and move the latter to the right to stopping position.

A rod 45 is connected at its rear end to loom clutch operating mechanism not specifically shown herein by means of which the loom is set in operation by forward motion to the left, as viewed in Fig. 5, of the rod. A lever 46 and link 4! connect the shipper handle to the rod 45 in the usual manner.

A brake bar 50 extends to the brake mechanism customarily associated with the loom driving mechanism and is controlled by a lever 5| rocking about an axis 52. A slot 53 in the upper part of lever 52 receives a stud 54 secured to the lower arm 55 of the brake handle 40.

Under normal running conditions the brake and shipper handles will be pulled forward, or to the left as viewed in Fig. 5, and the rod 45 will be in such position as to connect the loom to the driving motor and have the brake in off position. If the brake lever 40 is moved rearwardly, or to the right, Fig. 5, screw 43 will engage 2. lug 44 and move a shipper lever 4| to the right or to stopping position, thereby disconnecting the clutch of the loom simultaneous with application of the brake.

The braking and shipping mechanism set forth more particularly in Fig. 5 is of usual construction and is set forth herein as one example of means for controlling operation of the loom.

The lay I I has secured thereto a forwardly projecting dagger which normally travels in a path above a bunter 5| which is pivoted on the stud 54. The bunter has an upright arm 62 through which extends a bunter lifter rod 63 having secured thereto a collar 64 behind the arm 52. Rod 63 extends forwardly and is connected to the core 65 of a solenoid 66. The latter is mounted on a bracket 61 having a side wall 68 through which rod 63 passes. A compression spring 69 is operatively transposed between the plate 68 and a collar 10 secured to rod 63 and normally acts to hold the rod in idle or normal position to the right, as shown in Fig. 5. When the rod is in this position the bunter 6| will fall to the operating or non-stopping position, in full lines Fig. 5, below the path of the bunter. When the solenoid is energized its core and rod 63 move to the left, Fig. 5, thereby rocking the bunter 6| in a counter-clockwise direction in the path of the dagger 5!], and as the lay moves forwardly the dagger and bunter will cooperate to rock the brake lever and move the shipper lever to stopping position.

The dagger and bunter may be as shown in my prior Patent No. 2,263,983. The dagger 60 operates to move the brake lever to stopping position during forward movement of the lay when the shuttle boxes will be shifting if a shift is called for by the pattern mechanism. The picker sticks will ordinarily operate one at a time after completion of the shuttle box shifting period and as the lay is moving rearwardly.

Referring more particularly to Fig. 2, it will be seen that a small stand it is secured to the side plate 32 by the upper bolts 34. This stand has a lateral arm H to which is secured an electric switch i2 operated by a plunger 13. The latter is ordinarily in extended position corresponding to open position of the switch 12, but when the plunger is depressed, or moved to the left as viewed in Fig. 2, the switch 12 will be closed.

A switch closing member 15 is secured to the detent 25 and is normally spaced from the plunger 13 so long as the detent head 2'! is in normal position in notch 28. If for any reason the box lifter rod l5 and the coupling 20 cannot move with the actuator rod 2| the detent 25 will move to the left, Fig. 2, as already described, and the switch closing member 15 will depress the plunger 13 to close the switch 12. This closure of switch 12 will occur early during the box shifting period and while the lay is moving forwardly and is either at or is only a short distance in" front of its bottom center position. Closure of switch 12 will effect energization of solenoid 66 and listing of bunter 6| into the path of dagger 60. The lay, therefore, operates during the early part of the box shifting period to move the handles 40 and 4| to stopping position, thereby allowing time for the loom to be brought to rest before the picking point is reached in the loom cycle and picker stick l4 would otherwise operate.

Fig. 6 shows a form of electric circuit which can be used with the invention. The circuit includes a shipper handle controlled switch 16 which is closed when the loom is running but is open when the shipper handle moves to stopping position. The circuit may be energized by a transformer T and it will normally be open during loom operation due to the fact that the switch T2 will ordinarily be open. Upon closure of the latter switch,

however, electric power from the transformer will 'energize the solenoid to effect stoppage as already described.

From the foregoing it will be seen that the invention sets forth simple means by which yielding of the detent 25 effects closure of a normally open switch the effect of which is to energize the solenoid 66 and lift the bunter 6| into the path of the dagger 60. The yielding of the detent occurs very early in the box shifting period while the lay is still a considerable distance from front center and the bunter and dagger can be so set that they will cooperate to shift the handles 40 and 4| to stopping position shortly after the box shifting period starts. The loom will therefore have ample time to come to rest before picking which ordinarily occurs when the lay is at top center. If a shuttle should overhang part of the lay and prevent proper shifting of the gang G the loom will be stopped before the picker stick can make an attempt to pick the misplaced shuttle and breakage will be avoided.

Having thus described the invention it will be seen that changes and modifications of the foregoing specific disclosure may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

What is claimed as new is:

1. In electric stopping means for a loom having a knock-off bunter and having a lay provided with a dagger and a gang of shuttle boxes which shift during a shifting period preceding a picking operation and startin while the lay is moving forwardly, shuttle box shifting mechanism operating at the start of a shifting period to shift said gang of shuttle boxes, said mechanism including a coupling moving with said gang and a detent normally in operative position with respect to an actuator to cause said gang to be moved by the actuator but moved out of said operative position if the gang is unable to shift, a normally open electric switch closed by said detent when the latter moves out of said operative position thereof, and electromagnetically controlled means cooperating with said bunter incident to closure of said switch during forward movement of the lay to initiate loom stoppage early in said shifting period.

2. In electric stopping means for a loom having a lay provided with a dagger and a gang of shuttle boxes which shift during a shifting period preceding a picking operation and starting while the lay is moving forwardly, shuttle box shifting mechanism operating at the start of a shifting period to shift said gang of shuttle boxes, said mechanism including a box lifter rod connected to said gang and an actuator rod and a coupling connected to one of said rods and including a detent normally in a notch in the other rod but moved relatively to the coupling when the actuator rod moves early in said period while the lay is moving forwardly and the lifter rod is unable to move, a normally open switch on the coupling closed by said detent when the 1atter moves relatively to the coupling, a solenoid energized when said switch is closed, a hunter moved into the path of said dagger incident to energization of the solenoid to be moved by the dagger as the lay moves forwardly, and means effecting loom stoppage when the hunter is moved by the dagger.

3. In a loom having a shiftable gang of shuttle boxes on a lay having a dagger, a box lifter rod secured to said gang, an actuator formed with a notch and having a movement to effect shifting of said gang, a coupling operatively connecting the lifter rod and actuator and including a detent on the coupling and having a head, a spring on said coupling normally holding the head in said notch but yieldable to permit said head to slip out of said notch and have a releasing movement relative to the coupling when the actuator moves and the box lifter rod cannot move, a normally open electric switch on said coup-ling closed by said detent when the head has said releasing movement, and means including a solenoid controlled by closure of said switch and operated by the dagger on the lay during forward movement of the latter to eifect loom stoippage as a result of closure of said switch.

4. In shifting shuttle box mechanism for a loom having a box lifter rod and an actuator having a notch therein, a coupling pivoted with respect to the box lifter rod, a detent on the coupling and having a head, a spring on the coupling normally holding the head in the notch, a normally open electric switch on the coupling, and switch closin means on the head moved by the latter to close the switch when the head slips out of said notch.

5. In shifting shuttle box mechanism for a loom having a box lifter rod and an actuator having a notch therein, a coupling pivoted with respect to the box lifter rod, a detent pivoted on the'coupling and having a head, a spring on the couplin normally holding the head in the notch, a stand on the coupling, a normally open electric switch having a member which when moved from the normal position thereof effects closure of the switch, said switch being mounted on said stand with said member in position to be moved from the normal position thereof by said head when the latter slips out of said notch.

CLIFFORD DARWIN.

No references cited. 

